Description
Book SynopsisBarbara Jefferson, a young American teaching in Tokyo in the 1960s, is set on a life-changing quest when her Japanese surrogate mother, Michi, dies, leaving her a tansu of homemade plum wines wrapped in rice paper. Within the papers, Barbara discovers writings in Japanese calligraphy that comprise a startling personal narrative.
Trade ReviewA mystery that unfolds as beautifully, delicately, and ceremoniously as a lotus blossom. One of the most memorable novels I have read in many years. - Lee Smith, author of The Last Girls ""A complex and lyrical story about love and betrayal, war and responsibility, humane and generous acts in an inhumane world, the contrast between the East and the West, and one woman coming to terms with the American role in destroying innocent lives after World War II and during the Vietnam War."" - Susan Richards Shreve, author of Daughters of the New World ""What makes this book powerful is its commentary about the long-term effects of war, the inability of human beings to ever get over the past or to really understand each others' cultures, and the devastating consequences of American foreign policy."" - Rebecca Brown, author of Excerpts from a Family Medical Dictionary ""Plum Wine is in equal parts mystery and romance, an enchantment cast with wise and graceful passion."" - Karen Joy Fowler, author of The Jane Austen Book Club
